Wine Production : Vine to Bottle - Vinum Vine

INE PRODUCTION 6W
Box 1.1
Definition of crossing
Crossing: Variety produced by fertilising one Vitis vinifera variety
with the pollen of another Vitis vinifera variety.
Box 1.2
Definition of hybrid
Hybrid: A crossing of two vine species. Illegal in the European
Union for quality wine production.
It is possible to cross two varieties and thus produce a crossing,
itself a new variety. For example the variety Müller-Thurgau (also
known as Rivaner) is a crossing bred in 1882 by Professor Müller
from Thurgau in Switzerland. It was once thought to be a crossing of
Riesling (mother) and Silvaner (father), although the current belief is
that the father was the variety Gutedel (also known as Chasselas).
It is important not to confuse the term crossing with hybrid – see
Boxes 1.1 and 1.2.
From any variety breeders can select individual clones. Clonal
selection is basically breeding asexually from a single parent, aiming
to obtain certain characteristics such as yield, flavour, good plant
shape, early ripening, disease resistance, etc.
In spite of the tremendous development with clonal selection during
the past 20 years, most growers believe that old vines give the highest
quality juice. Research on genetic modification of vines is taking
place, but at present no wine is produced from genetically modified
plants.
1.4 Reasons for grafting
Although nearly all the world’s wine is produced by various varieties
of the species Vitis vinifera, the roots on which the Vitis vinifera vines
are growing are usually those of another species. Why is this